Mounting means for foil type and similar elements

ABSTRACT

The disclosure describes a support for a stationary drainage element for a paper machine extending across the Fourdrinier wire. The support comprises a flaring tenon for a dovetail slide incorporating means to adjust the distance between the flaring walls. The drainage element has a mortise slot for cooperating with the slide. The flare of the slide is adjusted by means of an actuator mounted at one end of the support. This abstract is intended neither to define the invention of the application, which is to be measured by the claims, nor in any way to be limiting as to the scope of the invention.

United States Patent Grenier 51 Feb. 29, 1972 [54} MOUNTING MEANS FORFOlL TYPE AND SIMILAR ELEMENTS [72] Inventor: John E. Grenier, CherryValley, Mass.

[73] Assignee: Lodding Engineering Corporation, Au-

burn, Mass.

[22] Filed: Apr. 22, 1968 [21] Appl. No.: 722,960

[52] US. Cl ..l6 2/352, 162/374 [51] Int. Cl. ..D211 1/48 [58] FieldofSearch ..l62/352, 354, 353, 374;

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,535,204 l0/l970 Truxq..l62/352 Primary Examiner-Reuben Friedman Assistant Examiner-T. A.Granger Attorney-Alfred H. Rosen [57] ABSTRACT The disclosure describesa support for a stationary drainage element for a paper machineextending across the Fourdrinier wire. The support comprises a flaringtenon for a dovetail slide incorporating means to adjust the distancebetween the flaring walls. The drainage element has a mortise slot forcooperating with the slide. The flare of the slide is adjusted by meansof an actuator mounted at one end of the support.

This abstract is intended neither to define the invention of theapplication, which is to be measured by the claims, nor in any way to belimiting as to the scope of the invention.

4 Claims, 9 Drawing Figures PATENTEDFEB29 I972 SHEET 2 BF 3 John A.firelzz'er lauenbr PATENTEmwze m2 SHEET 3 OF 3 ezziel John A. Gr

weak! wraey MOUNTING MEANS FOR FOIL TYPE AND SIMILAR ELEWNTS BACKGROUNDOF THE INVENTION Foil-type drainage apparatus for papermaking machinesinvolves one or more drainage elements disposed in fixed relationship tothe Fourdrinier wire and extending across the machine transversely tothe direction of wire travel. Depending on the width of the paper beingmade, the drainage elements can be as long as thirty feet, or more.Examples of two different types of such drainage elements are found,respectively, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,928,465 and 3,323,982. The elementsare subject to wear, and for this and other reasons it is desirable thatthey be exchangeable and hence removably mounted on supports. U.S. Pat.No. 3,165,440 proposes a solution incorporating a dovetail slide on thesupport and a mating mortise slot in the element for removal andinstallation of the element by sliding it lengthwise, across thedirection of wire travel. The utility of this solution for exchangingelements while the machine is running is obvious, but the problem ofmaintaining a tight fit on the slide, without binding the element to itso tightly that it cannot be moved, limits the length of the foilelement that can be mounted in this manner. Other solutions employing anadjustable gib, which can be tightened by one or more bolts to lock along element in place on a dovetail tenon, can indeed hold a long (e.g.:30 feet) element in place on its support, but obviously such solutionswill not allow the element to be changed while the machine is operating.The problems of maintenance and replacement of these elements has beenrecognized in U.S. Pat. No. 3,337,394, which proposes a structure formounting each element on a supporting rail in a slidably removablemanner. This structure, however, relies on springs to take up slackbetween the tenon and the mortise slot, and does not positively lock theelement in place on its support, or hold it rigidly against the forcespresent to it by a Fourdrinier wire moving at high speed. There is needfor a mounting structure for strip-shaped elements like drainage foilsfor Fourdrinier paper machines which will enable long elements to bemounted and removed while the machine is running, which will positivelylock the element in place on its mounting, and which will readilyrelease it for removal when desired.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The principal object of the invention is toprovide in apparatus for papermaking machines having replaceablestripshaped elements, such as foils, sealing ribs, wear strips and thelike, a support for such elements on which the element can be locked inposition and when desired released and readily removed while the machineis in operation. Another object is to provide locking and releasingmeans which do not interfere with the removal or location of an elementon its support. Another object is to provide a support incorporatinglocking and releasing means in a structure which is not complex orexpensive to construct, which is durable and will retain its abilitypositively to lock and release without fatiguing over a long period oftime, and which will not adversely affect the production of paper.

The invention contemplates, in general, the provision of a support ormounting means incorporating a dovetail slide having a flaring tenon andlocking means within the tenon to alter the distance between at least apart of its flaring walls, and cooperating therewith a strip-shapedelement having a mortise slot shaped to slide on the tenon, the slotbeing so dimensioned that when the locking means is in the lockingposition the tenon expands in the slot to bind the element firmly inplace, and when the locking means is in the releasing position the tenoncontracts so that the element slides loosely on it.

DESCRIPTION OF AN EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENT The following description of anexemplary embodiment of the invention refers to the accompanyingdrawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a side elevation showing the relationship between drainageapparatus incorporating the invention and the Fourdrinier wire of apapermaking machine;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged end view, in greater detail, of one of thedrainage elements shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a plan view, partly broken away, of FIG. 2, showing thelocking and releasing mechanism;

FIG. 4 is a section on line 44 of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a section on line 55 of FIG. 3;

FIG. 6 (A-C) shows an alternative operating mechanism for the lockingand releasing mechanism; and

FIG. 7 is an isometric view of the operator used in the operatingmechanism of FIG. 6.

FIG. 1 schematically illustrates a papermaking machine of well-knownform employing a Fourdrinier forming wire 10 which travels around rolls11 and 12. A drainage apparatus generally designated 13 is locatedbeneath the upper run 10A of the forming wire. The drainage apparatus issupported on the side rails of the machine, one of which is partiallyshown at 14, and incorporates a plurality (in this example five) ofdrainage foils 15, each of which is mounted on a dovetail slide 16,which in turn is supported on a mounting rail 17. The rails 17 aresupported on one or more frames 18 (one of which is shown at an end ofthe drainage apparatus), and the entire apparatus is supported on theside rails 14 by means of threaded studs 19 mounted at one end thereon,and end flanges 21 (one only being shown) held in place on the studs bynuts 22. It will be appreciated that the details of mounting drainageapparatus on a papermaking machine are not material to the invention,which is concerned only with securing a foil element 15 on its mountingrail 17 in a manner which firmly locks the element in place, and whichallows the element to be unlocked and removed by sliding it lengthwisealong the dovetail slide 16 while the machine is running and the formingwire 10A is moving across the drainage apparatus. Reference is now madeto FIGS. 2-5 which show these parts 15, 16 and 17 in greater detail,together with other parts and components associated in combination withthem.

The dovetail slide 16 is made of two elongated strips 16A and 16B offlexible material, such as stainless steel, which are fastened to therail I7, as by bolts 23, of which one is shown in FIG. 4. Each strip hasa base, a side wall bent from the base at an obtuse angle, and a flangeat the far edge of the sidewall, bent at an acute angle to the sidewallso that it is approximately parallel to the base. The bases areapertured for passage of the bolts 23 and are bolted to the rail 17, andthe sidewalls flare outwardly from the base to the flanges. The flangesconfront each other, and are spaced apart. A locking slide 24 issupported between the strips 16A and 16B, in the acute-angled cornersformed between the sidewalls and the flanges of the respective strips.The locking slide is a sheet of flat stock, which may also be stainlesssteel. A plurality of indented dimples 25, one of which is shown in FIG.3, are formed in the acute-angled corner of at least one of the strips16A, and the locking slide 24 has a plurality of inwardly curving camedges 26 (one shown in FIG. 3) along the edge confronting that corner,located to register with the dimples when the slide is in a firstposition for releasing the foil element 15. When the locking slide 24 ismoved lengthwise within the dovetail slide 16, in either direction asrepresented by the double-headed arrow 27, the cam edges push againstthe dimples and thereby increase the distance between the strips 16A and168 in the vicinity of the flanges, or the wider portion of the dovetailslide. There is thus provided a flaring tenon for a dovetail slidehaving within it means for altering the distance between at least aportion of its sidewalls.

The drainage element I5 has a mortise slot 15A which mates with thedovetail slide 16. This slot is so dimensioned, relative to the slide,that when the locking slide is in the unlocked position (shown in FIG.3), the drainage element slides loosely on the tenon, and when thelocking slide is in the locked position (not shown), the drainageelement is tightly bound on the tenon, and hence on the rail 17. Aconvenient mechanism for moving the locking slide between these twopositions includes a key 30 having a finger 31 engaging an aperture 32at one end of the locking slide 24. The key has a threaded shaft 33which runs in a threaded sleeve 34, which in turn is mounted in athreaded bore 35 in a post 36 supported by bolts 38, 35 in a collar 37mounted to an end of the rail 17. The sleeve 34 has an enlarged end 41with a keyhole 42 in it, for cooperation with a wrench to turn thesleeve and thereby move the key 30 in one of the directions of thedouble-headed arrow 27. It will be seen that the entire operatingmechanism described above is organized so that it can be made smallenough to fit within the mortise slot A of the foil element 15, so thatthe element mayslide on or off the dovetail slide 16 passing withoutinterference over the operating mechanism for the locking slide 24. Thismechanism can be located at either end of the rail 17, depending onwhich side of the papermaking machine has room to allow the removal orinstallation of the element 15.

In FIG. 6 (A-C) the operating mechanism for the locking slide 24 employsa separate operate 51, to pull or push on a key 30.5 having a finger31.5 in the aperture 32. The key has a bifurcated fitting 52 affixed toits end outside the tenon, the two arms of 52.1 and 52.2 of which haveslots 53.1 and 53.2 collinearly disposed in one side of the fitting. Apivot-platform member 61 is afiixed to the end of the rail 17 at whichthe key is located, as by a bolt 62. This member has a pivot socket 64in its pivot platform 63, to receive a pivot pin 55 located at one endof the operator 51. The pivot platform 63 is affixed to an uprightmember 65 which is bolted to the rail 17, and which has a slot 66 in itstop end, through which the shaft of the key 30.5 passes. The operatorhas a pair of fingers 56, 57 extending one from each side perpendicularto the pivot pin 55, which respectively engage in the slots 53.1 and53.2 of the arms 52.1 and 52.2 when the pivot pin is located in thepivot socket 64 and the operator 51 is positioned between the arms 52.1and 52.2 of the bifurcated key fitting 52. The pivot socket 64 is largeenough to allow the pivot pin to pass through it, and is countersunk atboth sides of the pivot platform 63, to allow the pivot pin to bewobbled in the socket. The fingers 56 and 57 are cylindrical in crosssection and can rotate in the slots 53.1 and 53.2. Thus, one can engagethe operator 51 in the pivot socket 64 and the slots 53.1 and 53.2 and,using the pivot pin 55 as a fulcrum, one can force the locking slide ineither direction, lengthwise, within the dovetail slide 16 Le, in eitherdirection of the double-headed arrow 27), to lock or unlock the drainageelement 15.

While the invention has been illustrated in connection with drainagefoils, it is obviously not limited to that use. Thus, it is contemplatedto use the invention in suction boxes, forming boards, feltconditioners, sealing ribs, and wear strips generally, to cite but a fewexamples. Nor is the invention tobe limited to the operating mechanismor other details illustrated or described in the exemplary embodiment.It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that changes andmodifications can be made, and it is therefore intended to define theinvention only in the appended claims.

lclaim:

1. A stationary drainage element for a paper machine disposed in fixedrelationship to the Fourdrinier wire and extending in a first directionacross the machine transversely of the direction of wire travelcomprising support means for said element having a dovetail slideextending in said first direction, said slide having a tenon flaringtransverse to said first direction, said element having a mortise slotextending in said first direction and converging transverse to saidfirst direction toward its open side for sliding in said first directionto interlock with said slide, characterized by adjustable locking meanswithin said tenon for locking said element in said relationship on saidslide, and when unlocked for releasing said element to be removed fromsaid relationship by sliding motion off said slide in said firstdirection to one side or the other of said machine.

2. A drainage element according to claim 1 in WhlCh said tenon is hollowand has sidewalls which diverge from a narrow part to a wide part and isopen at said wide part, and said adjusting means is operable betweensaid sidewalls in said wide part to force said sidewalls apart againstconfronting walls of said slot to lock said element on said slide, saidsidewalls when not forced apart by said adjusting means beingsufficiently closer together to allow freely sliding motion of saidelement on said slide.

3. A drainage elementaccording to claim 1 including operator meanslocated at one end of said support for adjusting said locking means.

4. A drainage element according to claim 3 in which said operator meansis located in the path of said mortise slot when said element is in saidsliding motion, and the dimensions of said operator means transverse tosaid first direction are smaller than corresponding dimensions of saidslot, whereby said element can pass said slot over said operator means.

1. A stationary drainage element for a paper machine disposed in fixedrelationship to the Fourdrinier wire and extending in a first directionacross the machine transversely of the direction of wire travelcomprising support means for said element having a dovetail slideextending in said first direction, said slide having a tenon flaringtransverse to said first direction, said element having a mortise slotextending in said first direction and converging transverse to saidfirst direction toward its open side for sliding in said first directionto interlock with said slide, characterized by adjustable locking meanswithin said tenon for locking said element in said relationship on saidslide, and when unlocked for releasing said element to be removed fromsaid relationship by sliding motion off said slide in said firstdirection to one side or the other of said machine.
 2. A drainageelement according to claim 1 in which said tenon is hollow and hassidewalls which diverge from a narrow part to a wide part and is open atsaid wide part, and said adjusting means is operable between saidsidewalls in said wide part to force said sidewalls apart againstconfronting walls of said slot to lock said element on said slide, saidsidewalls when not forced apart by said adjusting means beingsufficiently closer together to allow freely sliding motion of saidelement on said slide.
 3. A drainage element according to claim 1including operator means located at one end of said support foradjusting said locking means.
 4. A drainage element according to claim 3in which said operator means is located in the path of said mortise slotwhen said element is in said sliding motion, and the dimensions of saidoperator means transverse to said first direction are smaller thancorresponding dimensions of said slot, whereby said element can passsaid slot over said operator means.